Data Entry Systems

ABSTRACT

A data entry system includes a hand held data entry unit having a reading sensor for sensing commands and/or data, rewritable storage for storing information relating to selectable items, a controller (a microprocessor or other processing circuitry) and a display screen for displaying a user readable representation of the commands and/or stored information for a selected item, and a telecommunication interface for the telephonic transmission of information relating to a selected item or items from the storage to a remote processing center and for the telephonic information relating to selectable items from the remote processing center to the storage. Preferably a telecommunications interface is provided in the hand held unit for cellular or other wireless telephony systems. The hand held unit can be configured to combine the data entry functions with those of audio telephony.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.13/036,987, filed on Jan. 28, 2011, which is a continuation of U.S.patent application Ser. No. 12/348,051, filed on Jan. 2, 2009 (now U.S.Pat. No. 7,920,898), which is a continuation of U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 11/515,152 (now U.S. Pat. No. 7,505,785), filed on Aug. 31,2006, which is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.10/869,215, filed on Jun. 15, 2004 (now U.S. Pat. No. 7,139,591), whichis a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/548,565, filedon Apr. 13, 2000 (now abandoned), which is a continuation of U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 08/619,682, filing date May 23, 1996 (now U.S. Pat.No. 6,058,304), filed as a 371 national stage application ofinternational application No. PCT/GB94/02101, filed on Sep. 27, 1994,which claims priority to GB 9321133.2, filed on Oct. 13, 1993. All ofthe foregoing disclosures are hereby incorporated by reference in theirentireties.

This invention relates to data entry systems, to applications of suchdata entry systems and to equipment for use therewith.

UK patent GB-B-2,202,664 describes an example of an application for adata entry system for the automated ordering of merchandisable items.Merchandisable items are represented in a printed catalogue or otherform of list and are associated with bar codes. A merchandise orderingunit comprises a bar code reader with a telephone transmissioncapability for use in selecting one or more items from the catalogue andtransmitting electronically an order for the merchandise to a processingcentre over the public telephone network. The orders for themerchandisable items received in this way are processed in theprocessing centre. As described, the hand held data entry terminalcomprises a calculator-like processing unit with a pen-like bar codereader wand electrically connected to the processing unit via a flexiblecable. The processing unit includes a display for displaying informationand a telephone transmission capability for transmitting captured datavia the telephone network. Although this system works well, it is ratherbulky and can be somewhat inconvenient in use as it requires two handedoperation, one hand for the processing unit and one hand for the wand.Alternatively, if the processing unit is not carried all the time, itneeds to be located in a position where the display on the processingunit can be seen and the keys on the processing unit can be operated. Itwill be appreciated that particularly where the processing unit is beingcarried in the hand, operation of the keys on it while holding the wandrequires considerable dexterity.

European patent application EP-A-0,094,571 describes a self-containedportable data entry terminal positioned within a portable wand-typeenclosure. The wand contains a bar code optical reader, signalconditioning electronics, a microprocessor, a memory and a rechargeablebattery. The optical reader is operable as a transmitter/receiver sothat readout of data stored in the memory is possible. An example of theuse of the portable data terminal is described in which captured barcode data can be output from the memory via the optical reader to anoptical receiver and from there via an audio coupler to a telephone linefor transmission to a remote station. Another example is described wherethe bar code data relates to items on a menu in a restaurant. Capturedmenu selections can be output from the memory via the optical reader toan optical receiver and from there via a computer to a printer in akitchen. Also described is the programming of the portable data entryterminal using an optical transmitter to input data via the opticalreader. The wand includes a beeper for indicating the correct reading ofa bar code and the current memory loading. The wand described inEP-A-0,094,571 is relatively simple in construction, and although it isreadily portable, it does not provide any confirmation of what has beenread.

A further portable data entry terminal manufactured by TelxonCorporation is described in an article entitled “Telxon Corporation,Portable Data Collection and Entry Systems” published by McGraw-Hill in1989 and referenced “R51-832-101 SKU/UPC Marking and Reading Equipment”.The article describes various models of data entry terminals similar tothat described in UK patent GB-8-2,202,664. Data from the terminals canbe transmitted to a remote station via various telecommunication optionsincluding direct connect modems and acoustic couplers. The data entryterminals have a generally rectangular format, similar to a largescientific calculator with a rectangular display and an array of keys.For most models, a separate bar code reader wand is provided which isconnected to the data entry terminal via a flexible cable, requiring atwo-handed operation as described above. One model PTC-620 has the samebasic format as the other terminals, but is described as being forsimple applications and features a snap-on reversible head forone-handed operation with either the left or the right hand. However,this terminal is still relatively bulky and cumbersome and in use it iseasy inadvertently to operate one or more keys in the array of keys.

An object of the present invention is to provide a data entry systemwhich mitigates the problems of the prior art.

In accordance with an aspect of the invention, there is provided a dataentry system comprising a hand held data entry unit, the hand held unitcomprising a reading sensor for sensing commands and/or data and forproducing input signals in response to the sensed commands and/or data,rewritable storage for information relating to selectable items, acontroller connected to receive and process the input signals from thesensor for responding to the commands to control the hand held unitand/or to the data to select the item and a display screen fordisplaying a user readable representation of the commands and/or storedinformation for the selected item, and a telecommunications interfacefor telephonic transmission of information relating to a selected itemor items from the storage to a remote processing centre and fortelephonic transmission of information relating to selectable items fromthe remote processing centre to the storage.

The provision of a hand held unit having an integral sensor, control,storage, display means with a telecommunications interface enables theunit to he used in a particularly efficient and self-contained mannerfor the capture, processing, storage, display and transmission of data.The inclusion of the display in the hand held unit enables the user toverify the data being captured without taking his or her eyes off theareas in which data capture is taking place.

Preferably, the telecommunications interface is integral to the handheld unit. The provision of a telecommunications interface in the handheld unit enables captured data to be used for direct telephonictransmission of the captured data via a telephone network to a remoteprocessing centre. It also allows for data and/or commands to bereceived from the remote data processing centre.

Preferably, the hand held unit includes a rechargeable power source.There can be provided a base unit separate from the hand held unit,wherein the base unit includes a charger unit and the base unit and thehand held unit are provided with respective interconnectable electricalconnectors for recharging the rechargeable power source.

In some embodiments of the invention, the data entry system can comprisea base unit separate from the hand held unit, wherein the base unit andthe hand held unit are provided with a wireless data link which isoperable for bidirectional data transfer between the hand held unit andthe base unit, and wherein the base unit includes a telecommunicationsinterface for telephonic transmission of information relating to aselected item or items from the storage to a remote processing centreand for telephonic transmission of information relating to selectableitems from the remote processing centre to the storage. In thisembodiment, the wireless data link preferably comprises, in the baseunit and the hand held unit, optical transmitters and/or receivers whichcooperate when the hand held unit is in the rest position to provide atwo way optical data link for transferring data from the hand held unitto the base unit and/or from the base unit to the hand held unit. Inother embodiments it could comprise respective radio frequency, ratherthan optical, transmitters and receivers, or indeed other types oftransmitters and receivers.

In preferred embodiments of the invention, the telecommunicationsinterface is an interface for connection to a wireless telephonynetwork. This provides for a particularly advantageous implementation ofthe invention, which can then be used without the need to plug in thedata entry system to, for example, a conventional wired telephonenetwork.

In a preferred embodiment of the invention the telecommunicationsinterface is a cellular telephone network interface, in this embodimentof the invention, particularly where the telecommunications interface isincorporated in the hand held unit, the data entry system can be usedwith the convenience, for example, of a portable cellular phone.Cellular telephone networks are now common place and give a very widearea of coverage. This facilitates the use of a data entry system inaccordance with the invention in, for example, a user's home orworkplace.

Alternatively, the telecommunications interface can be a satellitetelephone network interface, or some other form of wireless telephoneinterface, for example a telephone interface for a telephone networkbased on highly localised transponder stations.

Where the telecommunications interface is intended to interface with ananalogue telephone network, the telecommunications interface includes amodem.

By arranging that the reading sensor can be used for the input ofcommands for controlling the hand held unit, the number of user inputmeans (e.g., keys) can be kept to a minimum, reducing the possibility ofinadvertent operation. Preferably, there are provided one or twomanually operable switches for scrolling the display in a first and/orsecond direction for selectively displaying a plurality of data storedin the storage. The scrolling of the display enables a large number ofitems to be accessed with a relatively compact display. In a preferredembodiment of the invention, the first and/or second switches are theonly switches on the hand held unit. Preferably also, operation of thefirst and/or second switches in predetermined operational states of thehand held unit causes predetermined functions other than scrollingfunctions to be performed (e.g., powering-up or powering-down of thehand held unit). By the provision of only two keys on the hand heldunit, the possibility of accidentally operating an incorrect key can bereduced, and also the hand held unit can be kept particularly compact.

Preferably, the hand held unit comprises a sensor for reading codeddata, the controller being arranged to access the stored information forselectable items to determine natural language characters or imagescorresponding to the coded data for display. The invention findsparticular, but not exclusive application to the reading of bar codesand/or binary dot codes, whereby the sensor is a bar code and/or dotcode reader. It will be appreciated that the invention also applies toother forms of codes.

The hand held data entry unit may comprise a reading head including areading sensor for producing input signals, wherein the reading sensortraces movements of the reading head and wherein the controller isresponsive to signals from the sensor representative of the movementsfor identifying characters traced by the reading head as captured data.In this manner data entry can be made in an advantageous manner bytracing out the characters of the data to be input or charactersrepresenting commands for controlling the operation of the data entrysystem.

Preferably, the controller is user programmable to cause the captureddata to be displayed on the display either in a first orientationsuitable for reading displayed data when the hand held unit is held in auser's right hand, or in a second orientation suitable for readingdisplayed data when the hand held unit is held in a user's left hand. Ina preferred embodiment the display has a substantially rectangulardisplay screen with a longitudinal axis arranged substantially parallelto a longitudinal axis of the hand held unit. For example, for righthanded operation, a string of characters could, for example, bedisplayed along the display from an end nearest to the sensor to the endfurthest therefrom, whereas for left handed operation, the same stringof characters would be displayed from the end of the display furthestfrom the sensor to the end nearest thereto.

A data entry system comprising a hand held unit with or without a baseunit as described above, can also include means for displaying aplurality of selectable items with associated data sources for userselection of an item by operation of the hand held unit and a remoteprocessing centre for processing user selections transmitted from thehand held unit. The controller in the hand held unit is preferablyarranged to respond to appropriate commands input, for example via thereading sensor, to issue coded instructions via the telecommunicationsinterface to the data processing centre and to receive programming data(e.g., relating to information for selectable items) from theprogramming centre for storage in the hand held unit.

The data entry system may additionally be arranged to provide thefunctions of a telephone to permit audio communication. In particular,if a cellular telephone interface is provided in a hand held unit, thisunit can advantageously combine the functions of the data entry unit anda cellular telephone.

Accordingly, the invention also provides a data entry systemadditionally comprising means for displaying a plurality of selectableitems with associated data sources for user selection of an item byoperation of the hand held unit and a remote processing centre forprocessing user selections transmitted from the hand held unit.Preferably, the hand held unit is programmable remotely from theprocessing centre.

In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the hand held unit isconfigured as an elongate unit such that it may be held by a user in themanner of a pen or quill with the reading sensor being located in areading head at or adjacent to one end of the hand held unit. Theconfiguration of the hand held unit such that it may be held in themanner of a pen or quill means that the unit can be held in a familiarand comfortable manner. Also, it facilitates the provision of user inputmeans (e.g. switches) on the hand held unit to be located such thatinadvertent operation thereof can easily be avoided.

Preferably the reading sensor is located in a reading head which isreleasably attached to the hand held unit. This enables alternativetypes of reading head to be connected to the hand held unit and/or forfaulty reading heads to be replaced easily.

The invention also provides a merchandising system comprising a dataentry system of this type wherein the selectable items aremerehandisable items and the remote processing centre initiatesprocessing of user orders of the selectable merchandisable items.

Thus, a data entry system in accordance with the invention, especially adata entry system comprising a hand held unit including atelecommunications interface for use with a wireless telephony system,such as a cellular network telephone system, provides a particularlyadvantageous device for use, for example, for “home shopping”. Itenables the user to make shopping selections from a catalogue or from aseries of options displayed on a television screen from the comfort ofhis or her home without the need to connect the device to a conventionaltelephone network. A hand held unit including a wireless telephonenetwork interface such as a cellular network interface finds particularapplication where the user of the system is travelling from place toplace and may need to perform data entry functions when they are farfrom a conventional wired telephone network socket.

A data entry system or a merchandising system as described abovepreferably includes a verification device in the form of a verificationcard (e.g., a credit, payment or other validation card) or like carriercarrying a verification bar code and/or dot code for verification of auser identity. Operation of the data entry system subsequent to aninitial data capture operation can then be made dependent on theidentification of authorised coded data.

The invention also provides a carrier for a plurality of data and/orcommand codes (e.g., bar and/or dot codes) for association with meansfor displaying a plurality of selectable items in a data entry system ora merchandising system as defined above, wherein the carrier carries aplurality of codes, each for a respective one of a plurality of naturallanguage and/or numeric characters, and a plurality of commands forcontrolling the operation of the data entry or merchandising system,each code being associated with a visual representation of thecorresponding natural language or numeric character or command and/or ofa graphical representation thereof. This avoids the need for a completecoded data source to be associated with each selectable item in, forexample, a catalogue, rather a composite code can be built up bycapturing a desired sequence of individual codes. By including thecommand characters as well, the need for a lot of keys on the data entrydevice can be avoided.

As an alternative to the use of bar codes, other data representationscould be used. Indeed, if the data entry device is provided with areading sensor in the form of a camera or other scanning sensor ratherthan a bar code reader, and the data entry device is provided withcharacter or image recognition logic, graphical or alphanumeric datarepresentations can be captured directly. One application of anembodiment of the pen with a camera head as its sensor could be forfingerprint recognition.

As an example of a possible mode of operation, a command character(e.g., a bar code) can be read using the reading head (e.g., a bar codereading head) and this can be used to load down remote data from aremote station. This is particularly advantageous mode of operationwhere the data entry system can set up a telephone connection to theremote station automatically, for example where the data entry devicehas cellular telephone capabilities.

The carrier is preferably in the form of a sheet of material. Thevarious characters and commands could be arranged in the manner of astandard typewriter keyboard layout to facilitate entry of individualcodes to make up a desired code sequence (e.g., for a specific productcode).

Exemplary embodiments of the invention will be described hereinafter, byway of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings inwhich like reference numerals are used for like features and in which:

FIGS. 1A and 1B are schematic views of a substantially pen-shaped handheld data entry device.

FIG. 2 is a schematic plan view of a base unit for use with the handheld unit of FIGS. 1A and 1B;

FIG. 3 is a schematic block diagram of the functional elements of afirst example of a hand held data device as shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B;

FIG. 4 is a schematic block diagram of the functional elements of a baseunit as shown in FIG. 2 for use with the hand held data entry device ofFIGS. 1A, 1B and 3;

FIG. 5 is an overview of a merchandising system using a data entryterminal such as is illustrated in the preceding Figures;

FIG. 6 represents a control card with bar codes for a number of numericand control characters;

FIG. 7 is flow diagram illustrating an example of the operation of adata entry system as described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 6;

FIG. 8 is a schematic block diagram of the functional elements of asecond example of a hand held data entry device as shown in FIGS, 1A and1B;

FIG. 9 is a schematic block diagram of the functional elements of afurther, self-contained, hand held data entry device which is intendedfor use without a base unit;

FIG. 10 is a schematic block diagram of the functional elements of afurther, self-contained, hand held data entry device for use without abase unit and intended, in particular, for use with a wireless telephonenetwork such as a cellular network;

FIG. 11 is a schematic block diagram illustrating components in an ASICforming part of the apparatus of FIG. 10; and

FIG. 12 is a schematic block diagram illustrating the inter-relationshipof functional elements of FIGS. 10 and 11.

FIGS. 1A and 1B are schematic views from above and below, respectively,of one embodiment of hand held data entry unit 10 which is substantiallypen-shaped and which will hereinafter, for reasons of conciseness only,be referred to as the “pen 10”. The pen 10 is intended to be held foressentially one handed operation between the thumb and forefinger ofeither the left or right hand in the manner of a conventional, if ratherthicker than usual, pen.

The pen 10 has an elongate body 12 with, in the present example,external dimensions of approximately 120 mm by 40 mm, although thedimensions may be larger or smaller as desired subject to technicallimitations. A reading head 14, for example a red or infra-red opticalreading head (e.g., a laser diode) suitable for reading bar codes islocated at one end of the pen. Other types of reading head may beprovided. The reading head is preferably-replaceable for interchangingtypes of reading head. A removable battery cover 16 covering a batterycompartment is located at the other end of the pen. As an alternative toa compartment for removable batteries, a removable and/or fixedrechargeable battery pack could be provided instead. Also, the readinghead in the present embodiment s arranged to read with a reading angleof between 0.degree. to 45.degree. to the normal to the bar code to beread.

On the upper surface of the pen shown in FIG. 1A a display screen 20,first and second microswitches 22 and 24, a first indicator light 26 anda second indicator light 28 are located. The display screen 20preferably comprises a conventional two-dimensional array of pixelswhich can be selectively activated in order to provide the display of awide range of displayable items. However, in a low cost version of thepen 10, the display may be configured only to display a predeterminedrange of characters and symbols, this reducing the complexity of thedisplay and the controlling logic and thus reducing the cost as will bewell understood by one skilled in the art

Any suitable display technology can be used which enables the displayedinformation to be read over a wide enough angular range such that it canbe read by the user when the pen is held at an angle suitable forreading a bar code. In this way it is not necessary to change theorientation of the pen in order to read the display. In view of the lowpower consumption and advantageous readability characteristics, a 2 lineby 16 character supertwist LCD display screen is employed in thepreferred embodiment giving a viewing area of approximately 60 mm by 16mm with a character size of approximately 3 mm by 5.5 mm. The display ispreferably located towards the end of the pen 10 opposite to the readinghead 14 with its longitudinal axis substantially parallel to thelongitudinal axis of the pen 10.

With the pen 10 held between thumb and forefinger with the user's handbelow the pen as viewed in FIG. 1A, and with the pen held at an angleof, say, 30″ to the normal of a bar code to be read, (assuming that thenormal to the bar code is generally in the direction of the line ofsight of the user), the display screen can be read without difficulty.

The switches 22 and 24 are used to control basic operations of the dataentry system and for control of the sequential display of storedinformation (scrolling of the display) as will be explained later. Theindicator light 26 is used to report successful scanning of a bar code.The indicator light 28 is used when rechargeable batteries (70, FIG. 3)are inserted in the battery compartment to indicate that the batteriesare charging.

On the lower surface of the pen 10 shown in FIG. 1B, an opticaltransmitter 32 and an optical receiver 34 are provided in a shallowrecess 33. Also, provided on the lower surface are a locating groove 36and first and second electrical contacts 30 and 31. The opticaltransmitter 32 and the optical receiver 34 are used in combination withan optical receiver 62 and optical transmitter 64, respectively, on abase unit 40 to be described with reference to FIG. 2, for the transferof data between the pen 10 and the base unit 40. The locating groove 36is used correctly to position the pen 10 with respect to a correspondingridge in a cradle 56 on the base unit 40 when the pen 10 is placed inthat cradle 56. The cradle 56 defines a rest position for the pen 10 onthe base unit 40. The first and second contacts 30 and 31 are arrangedto cooperate with corresponding contacts 60 and 61 in the cradle 56 onthe base unit 40 for charging the rechargeable batteries.

Turning now to FIG. 2, this illustrates a plan view of a base unit 40for use with the pen 10 of FIGS. 1A and 1B.

The base unit includes a generally rectangular housing 42 with a raisedportion 44 containing a power supply unit (102, FIG. 4) which receiveselectrical power via a mains supply cable 45 and a mains switch 46. Themains switch 46 is located on the right hand side of the base unithousing 42. Cooling slots 47 for the power supply unit (102, FIG. 4) areprovided in the upper surface of the raised portion 44. Further slots 48in the upper surface of the base unit housing 42 are located over aspeaker (110, FIG. 4) for relaying information to the user of the dataentry system. The rear of the housing 42 is also provided with a socket52 for a standard telephone plug for connecting the base unit 40 to atelephone line 50 and a standard serial connector 54 (e.g., an RS232connector) for connecting the base unit to, for example, a personalcomputer (not shown). A manual switch 53 can be provided for switchingbetween the telephone line and the serial connector. It will beappreciated that a parallel connector could be provided instead of, orin addition to, the serial connector 54. A separate telephone socket 55can be provided for the connection of a standard telephone handset tothe base unit.

Towards the front of the base unit housing 42, a recess is formed whichis configured as a cradle 56 for receiving the pen 10.

An optical receiver 62 and an optical transmitter 64 are located in thebottom of the recess for cooperating with the optical transmitter 32 andoptical receiver 34, respectively, when the pen is located in the cradle56. The optical receiver 62 and the optical transmitter 64 aresurrounded by a wall 63 which also forms a shroud between the opticalreceiver 62 and the optical transmitter 64. The wall 63 cooperates withthe recess 33 in the pen 10 to prevent external light reaching theoptical link, and the shroud between the optical receiver 62 and theoptical transmitter 64 prevents light from the two optical paths betweenthe pen and the base unit and between the base unit and the pen frominterfering with each other. It will be appreciated that alternativeconfigurations are possible, for example the wall could be provided onthe pen and the recess on the base unit, although this could mean thatthe pen was less comfortable to use.

First and second base contacts 60 and 61 are also located in the recessfor cooperating with the contacts 30 and 31 on the pen 10 when it isinserted in the cradle 56, thus enabling rechargeable batteries (70.FIG. 3) in the pen 10 to be recharged. A locating ridge 58 is formed inthe recess for cooperating with the locating groove 36 in the bottom ofthe pen 10 to enable to pen to be positioned correctly in the cradle 56such that the optical transmitter/receiver pairs 32/62 and 64/34 and thecontact pairs 30/60 and 31/61 are aligned correctly.

The pen 10 can also be provided with a socket for directly charging theinternal rechargeable batteries using an AC mains supply or a DC supply.In the first case the pen will include a transformer, in the second atransformer/rectifier could be incorporated in, for example, a mainsplug.

On a further raised portion 66, one or two base unit indicator lightsare provided. The first base unit indicator light 67 is for indicatingthe base unit is receiving mains power and is turned on. Optionally, thesecond base unit indicator light 68 can used to indicate thatrechargeable battery (70, FIG. 3) in the pen is being charged.

FIG. 3 is a schematic block diagram of the functional elements of thepen 10. A processor 74 is preferably formed by a conventionalprogrammable microprocessor (e.g., an Intel 80C31 12 MHz CMOSmicroprocessor with two internal clocks, an Intel 80486, etc.), althougha special purpose or specially configured unit (e.g. an ASIC) couldalternatively be used (compare FIG. 10). A read only memory (ROM) 76 isconnected via a bus 84 to the processor 74 for the storage of controlprograms and data. The ROM 76 can be implemented by any appropriatetechnology, for example by a flash PROM. A random access memory (RAM) 78(for example a 128 K low power static RAM, or higher capacity RAM, e.g,a 256 K, 512 K . . . 5 Mb, etc., RAM) is connected to the processor viathe bus 84. The RAM 78 is used as working storage and for the storage ofdata captured. using the reading head 14. A display interface 80, whichconnects the display 20 to the bus 84, responds to display instructionsfrom the processor to drive the display in a conventional manner. Anoptical interface 86 is connected to the bus to convert data to betransmitted into signals for driving the optical transmitter 32, andconverts signals from the optical receiver 34 into data to be passed tothe bus 84.

in the present embodiment, other connections are made directly to theprocessor rather than via the bus. Thus, in the present embodiment,signals relating to data captured by the reader head 14 are passeddirectly to the processor 74 to be processed.

The manual switch 22 is also connected directly to the processor. In usethis switch serves as a “scroll-down” key. The second manual switch 24,which in use serves as a “scroll-up” key, is, however, connected to theprocessor via a power control module (PCM) 72. This is because theswitch 24 also serves as a “power-up” key for turning the pen on orpowering it up after it has been powered down. The power control module72 responds to operation of the key 24 in a powered down state toconnect the battery 70 to the processor 74. The power control module 72also controls the charging of the battery 70 when the contacts 30 and 31are connected to the corresponding contacts 60 and 61 in the cradle 56of the base unit 40. The indicator light 67 (e.g., an LED or NEON) isconnected to the processor 74 and indicates when the base unit isconnected to the mains. The optional indicator light 68 (e.g., an LED orNEON) is connected to the power control module 72 to indicate when thebattery 70 is being charged.

The processor is programmed by means of control programs and data storedin the ROM 76 and, in use, in the RAM 78, to receive signals from thereading head 14, to interpret those signals and to derive data therefromwhich are displayed on the display 20 and stored in the RAM 78 forsubsequent transmission via the optical interface as will be describedin more detail below.

FIG. 4 is a schematic block diagram of the functional elements of thebase unit 40 of FIG. 2. A power supply module 102 is connected to amains supply via the switch 46 and the supply cable 45. The power supplyunit 102 is also connected to the contacts 60 and 61 so that, when thepen 10 is located in the cradle 56, the battery 70 can be recharged. Thepower supply unit 102 also supplies power to the other elements of thebase unit via supply lines which are represented schematically (forreasons of drawing simplicity) by the arrows 104.

A modem 100 is connected via an optical link 106 to an optical receiver62 and an optical transmitter 64. The optical interface 106 convertssignals from the optical receiver 62 to data to be passed to the modem100 and converts data from the modem 100 to signals to be transmitted bythe optical transmitter 64. A further interface e.g. a standardV24/RS232 interface—not shown) for connection to a personal computer(not shown) could also be provided. Also a socket for a connection to astandard telephone handset not shown) could be provided. The modem 100can be a conventional modem generally comprising a master control unit112, a data pump 114 and memory 118. The master control unit 112 isconnected to receive data from the optical interface 106 (and/or from aV24/16232 interface, if a personal computer is connected). Data from thedata pump 114 are coupled via a line interface 116 to the telephone line50. The data pump 116 is also connected via an audio interface 120 to aspeaker 110 for monitoring the transmission of data via the telephoneline 50.

FIG. 5 is a schematic representation of a data entry network comprisinga plurality of pens/base units 10/40 connected via respective telephoneconnections 50 (telephone lines, wireless telephone channels, etc) to aprocessing centre 108 where data transmitted from the individualpens/base units 10/40 are processed. In the preferred embodiment of theinvention, the pens/base units 10/40 are used for the placing of ordersfor merchandise and the processing centre 108 processes those orders anddispatches them to the users.

FIG. 6 is a schematic representation of an example of a control card foruse with the pen 10. The card shows bar codes for the numerals 0 to 9and for a set of commands. The command bar codes are used forcontrolling the operation of the pen 10. The control card can be thoughtof as a keyboard extension for the pen 10.

At this point it should be explained that the operation of reading a barcode is performed by the processor 74 in a conventional manner. Thus,where the head 14 comprises a red or infra-red light source and a lightsensor, signals representing changing levels of reflected illuminationsare supplied to the processor 74. Firmware stored in the ROM 76, or inother embodiments possibly hard-wired in the processor 74, is used thento decode the changing levels of reflected illumination to generate anumerical value. On successful reading of a bar code the good read light26 is illuminated.

The processor tests the numerical values to determine whether the sensedcode relates to data or a command. A look up table containing thenumerical values for individual commands (not shown) is configured inthe ROM 76 and/or RAM 78. By accessing this table, input commands can beidentified. The controlling software is aware of which commands can beexecuted for the current processing state. On identifying a currentlyexecutable command, the processor 74 executes that command and causesthe display of a human readable command description for userverification purposes. The processor causes an error message to bedisplayed on the display screen if a non executable command (e.g., acommand has been input at a wrong time) has been input.

If the code does not relate to a recognised command, it is treated asdata. The data are then stored in RAM as the result of reading a barcode and are used to address a description of the item referenced by thebar code value from a further look-up table, if a description of theitem corresponding to the bar code value is stored in the ROM 76 and/orthe RAM 78 in a suitable data structure so that the bar code value canbe used either directly or indirectly to address the appropriatedescription, then the item description can readily be displayed insteadof or as well as the bar code value for user verification purposes. Ifthe bar code is not read correctly, then an error message is displayedon the display screen.

The item description data can relate, for example, to items from amerchandising catalogue. In the this case the rewritable storagecapacity of the pen (e.g. the RAM 78) is chosen to be sufficient tostore all the items from one or more merchandising catalogues. If thedata is stored in volatile memory, this data is downloaded from theremote processing centre via the telecommunications link on restoringpower to the memory in the pen. Preferably, if volatile memory is used,power is supplied to the memory even when the pen is “switched off”. Anintegral rechargeable back-up battery can be provided in addition to thebattery 70 to maintain power to a volatile memory when the battery 70 isbeing changed. If non-volatile memory is provided, then this data can beretained during a period when no power is supplied to the memory.However, through the use of rewritable memory and control logic enablingthe memory to be updated using data downloaded from the remoteprocessing centre, it is possible to keep the pen's memory up to date ona full list of merchandisable items, including product description,availability, price, etc. Then on reading a bar code relating to an itemstored in memory the display on the pen can indicate a description ofthe item corresponding to the code read, its availability and price. Ifthe code read is not recognised, for example, the pen can be programmedautomatically to call up the remote processing centre to check onwhether an update of the pen's storage is needed when the pen isreplaced in the base unit.

FIG. 7 is a flow diagram illustrating an example of a possible series ofoperations using an example of data entry system such as that describedwith reference to FIGS. 1 to 6. It will be appreciated that othersequences and modes of operation may be provided in other embodiments ofthe invention.

In a first step, S1, the pen 10 is removed from the base unit 40.

In step S2, “Up” key switch 24 is operated. The power control modulesenses operation of this key switch and powers up the processor 74,which performs a series of diagnostic checks, calibrates itself and thendisplays an initial message (e.g., “Ready”) on the display 20.

In step S3 the “Down” and “Up” scroll keys switches 22 and 24 areoperated to scroll though a number of initial options pre-stored withinthe ROM 76 or the RAM 78 and presented on successive screens of dataitems on the display 20.

In this example of operation, in step S4, when an option “Left-handedoperation” is encountered on the screen, the pen is scanned over the“Enter” command bar code on the command sheet of FIG. 6. Whereas forright-handed operation, where text is displayed in English, the text isdisplayed in sequence from the end of the display nearest to the readinghead 14 towards the opposite end, for left-handed operation the textdisplay is inverted with the text then reading from the end of thedisplay furthest from the reading head to the end nearest thereto. Itcan be seen, therefore, that the text is displayed in an orientationappropriate for the user. If left-handed operation has already selectedand it is desired to use the pen in a right-handed mode, then“Right-handed operation” can be selected by scrolling the display usingthe “Down” and “Up” key switches 22 and 24 and then scanning the “Enter”command bar code when the appropriate option is displayed.

Other options which could be provided in this manner could, for example,be the selected of one of a number of operating languages.

In step S5, the scroll key switches 22 and 24 are again operated untilthe option “Ready” is encountered once more. Then a series ofmerchandise selections can be entered by the user by scanning the barcodes for the desired merchandise selections and the command bar codes“Enter”, “Clear”, “Quantity”, etc., as appropriate. As each bar code isscanned successfully, the good read indicator 26 lights and the dataread by the bar code reader is displayed on the screen. Either thealphanumeric value of the bar code read is displayed or, if adescription of the item corresponding to the bar code value is stored inthe RAM or the ROM, then this can be displayed instead of or as well asthe bar code value.

Step S5 can be repeated as often as desired until all the desired itemshave been entered, or until the RAM 78 has become full or nearly full,in which case a “Memory full” error message is displayed on the displayscreen 20.

If desired, the items entered and stored in the RAM 78 could be checkedby selecting a “Check Entries” option with the scroll key switches 22and 24. In this case the items entered can then be checked in sequenceusing the scroll key switches 22 and 24, and if necessary corrected byscanning the correct command bar code while the appropriate item isdisplayed.

In the example shown in FIG. 6, however, after entering the desireditems, a phone number is then entered in step S6 by scanning the commandbar code “Phone” followed by the number of the processing centre 108 tobe called. As an alternative to entering separately the telephonenumber, this could be pre-stored in memory, or could alternatively beincluded in the “Phone” bar code.

After this, in step S7 the pen is placed in the cradle on the base unitand the “Down” key switch 22 is pressed to download the data from thepen. This causes the data for the telephone number to be downloaded tothe modem 100 via the optical link 106. The downloading of the telephonenumber causes the base unit automatically to call the desired numberand, once the normal modem handshaking is completed, to transfer thedata stored in the RAM 78 in the pen 10. Preferably, in addition to theactual data stored, the processor 74 in the pen 10 automatically addserror correcting codes to enable the processing centre 108 to verifythat successful transmission has occurred. The processing centre 108then sends a message to confirm (or otherwise) whether successfultransmission occurred after checking the error correcting codes. Thismessage is then displayed on the display 20 of the pen 10.

It will be appreciated that the steps S1 to S7 illustrated above merelyform one possible method of operation. In an alternative embodiment ofthe invention, the scrolling function is only used for stepping thoughitems which have already been entered into the pen, whether in the formof selectable items downloaded from the remote processing centre and/oritems selected by means of the reading head. All other command functionsare input by reading appropriate command codes from a command sheet. Forthis embodiment therefore, a command sheet should include commands forleft and right handed operation, or a command for changing handedness.Then, to change between left and right-handed operation, it is merelynecessary to scan an appropriate command bar code.

In a final step (not shown in FIG. 7), the pen is turned off by pressingthe “Down” and “Up” scroll key switches simultaneously. It should benoted that the processor, which is provided with a date and time clock,is arranged to power-down the pen to conserve battery power if no barcodes are scanned and no key switches operated during a predeterminedinterval (e.g. 30 seconds). However, as mentioned above, power will bemaintained to the RAM 76 if this is a non-volatile memory.

The software stored in the pen also permits the loading of data from theprocessing centre or another remote computer. The programming isperformed using a series of commands preceded by dot codes. Theprogramming commands are thus known as “dot” commands and coveroperations such as RAM PEEK, RAM POKE, ROM PEEK, DISPLAY, SENSE, GETINFO, GET FIRST ITEM, GET NEXT ITEM, GET PREVIOUS ITEM, AMEND ITEM,DELETE ITEM, CLEAR ORDER, CLEAR CATALOGUE, ADD CATALOGUE ITEM, and AMENDCATALOGUE ITEM. In this way, a significant amount of catalogue dataand/or program software can be held in the processing centre and be sentto the pens only when required. Where programs are to be downloaded,rewritable program storage will be needed in the pen, for example byimplementing the ROM 76 in flash PROM technology.

The processing centre can also send commands to a hand held unit toinstruct the user to scan in a personal identification number (PIN)possibly with the scanning of a further verification number from, forexample a verification device in the form of a verification card (e.g.,a credit, payment or other validation card) or like carrier carrying averification bar code and/or dot code for verification of a useridentity. Alternatively, the verification device can be scanned prior toany connection to a remote processing centre. In this case a connectioncan then be made to the remote processing centre for verification of theuser identity. Operation of the data entry system subsequent to aninitial data capture operation can then be made dependent on theidentification of authorised coded data and a PIN number.

FIG. 8 illustrates another example of a pen 10 in accordance with theinvention. This example is substantially the same as the pen 10described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 3, apart from the addition of atouch sensitive screen 90 for the display 20. A touch screen interface88 couples the touch sensitive screen to the bus 84 so that data sensedby the touch sensitive screen can be communicated to the processor 74.Although FIG. 8 shows a touch sensitive screen 90 (e.g., an overlay)separate from a conventional display screen, any applicable touchsensitive screen technology can be used, either though the use of anaddition to an existing conventional display screen, or the use of adisplay screen with integral touch sensitivity. One or more touchsensitive areas can be defined on the touch sensitive screen area, incombination with the data displayed on the display screen, for the entryof commands and/or the selection of displayed items. In particular, theprocessor 74 can be arranged to display a menu of user selectable itemsand to be responsive to a location at which the screen is touched forinput of a user selection of a menu item. The touch sensitive screen canthen thus be used as a dynamic and reconfigurable user interface. Touchscreen entry can be used in place of or in addition to the entry ofcommands by scanning the bar codes on the command bar code card.

FIG. 9 illustrates another example of a pen 10 in accordance with theinvention. This example includes much in common with the pen 10 of FIG.3, except that here a modem 92, a socket 94 for a standard telephoneplug and a speaker 95 for monitoring transmissions during operation ofthe modem are provided in place of the optical interface 86 and opticaltransmitter and receivers 32 and 34. In this example, therefore, datacan be transmitted and received via a telephone line without the use ofthe base station, providing added portability. Preferably, a simplifiedbase station is provided in the form of a charging unit for rechargeablebatteries in the pen 10. It will be appreciated that the pen 10 couldalso be provided with the touch screen facility of the pen 10 of FIG. 8.

Although in the above embodiments, the pens 10 are intended for manualscanning of bar codes, it will be appreciated that they could also beused for reading other optically readable codes, such as binary dotcodes, by the provision of appropriate control software for programmingthe processor 74. Alternatively, in place of the sensor head 14 which isintended to be manually scanned, a self-scanning head could be provided.

The invention is also applicable to the reading of other coded datasources such as, for example, magnetic strips, graphical representationsand/or alphanumeric characters, by the provision of an appropriatereading head and control logic.

Alternative removable heads could be attached to the tip of the pen by ascrew, bayonet, friction or other appropriate attachment arrangement.

For example, the data entry pen could be provided with a reading headwhich is responsive to movement of the pen for tracing out desired codesand or commands. In particular, by the provision of a rolling ball in aholder in the reading head, of rotation sensing means in the manner of apersonal computer mouse for tracing movements of the ball and suitableinterpretation logic in software or special purpose hardware, fordefining a series of vectors as the pen is moved over a surface and forperforming pattern recognition on the resulting vector patterns toidentify control and/or alphanumeric characters traced out by the penhead, it is possible directly to input information into the pen by“writing” down those characters. By limiting the range of characters tobe recognised (e.g., corresponding to the numerals and commands shown inFIG. 6) it is possible to use conventional pattern recognitiontechniques with relatively limited processing power and storagerequirements. It will be appreciated that increased processing power andstorage can be provided in the pen described above for the embodimentsof FIGS. 1, 3, 8 and 9 by the use of a more powerful processor andincreased memory capacity.

FIG. 10 illustrates a further embodiment of the invention. This furtherembodiment of the invention is similar to the embodiment of FIG. 9, butthis embodiment is intended for use with a wireless data transmissionmeans, for example radio signals. In particular, the embodiment of FIG.10 is intended for use with a cellular telephone network, although itcould be adapted for use with some other form of wireless telephonesystem, for example a satellite based telephone network.

The embodiment of FIG. 10 is intended to be used independently of a baseunit and to contain all the necessary functionality for independentoperation. In one alternative the hand held unit is provided with arechargeable battery pack 70, which can be removed from the hand heldunit for recharging. In another alternative the hand held unit isprovided with a fixed rechargeable battery pack 70. In the latteralternative, and optionally in the former alternative, a mains voltagecharging socket and transformer/rectifier can be provided in the handheld unit or the battery pack for receiving a mains lead for chargingpurposes rather than the low voltage connectors 30/31. The low voltageDC charging connectors 30/31 can be configured in a socket for receivingan adapter lead, with a transformer/rectifier being provided, possiblyincorporated in a plug, for connection to a mains socket. It will beappreciated that an adapter for connection to, for example, a 12 volt DCsupply from a car may also be provided. As a further alternative,contactless recharging (for example by magnetic induction) could beemployed.

The embodiment of FIG. 10 is implemented using a ASIC, although aconventional microprocessor and external hardware could be used.Likewise, it will be appreciated that the embodiments described withreference to the previous Figures could also be implemented using a ASICor other equivalent technology instead of a microprocessor.

In the embodiment of FIG. 10, the ASIC (Application Specific IntegratedCircuit) performs the majority of the necessary processing functions ofthe device including:

accepting data from the head 14;

accepting data from the switches 22 and 24;

driving the indicator 26;

processing the data received from the head in the manner described withrespect to the previous embodiments in order to extract the necessaryinformation;

controlling the flow of data in and out of the RAM 78;

controlling the flow of data in and out of the ROM 76;

interfacing with the power control module 72;

implementing the modem function for use with an analogue telephonysystem and also providing the necessary processing and control forintegration with a digital telephony system and/or a cellular telephonenetwork;

controlling the loudspeaker 95 permitting the progress of calls to bemonitored;

accepting input from a microphone 152 to enable the pen in combinationwith the loudspeaker 95 to operate as a hand set for the purposes ofaudio telephony;

controlling the flow of data to an optional printer socket (not shown)allowing a user to print out information relative to the code beingscanned in a predefined format;

controlling the output of data via an optical link 153 to a peripheraldevice e.g., a printer) using for example, infra red light;

controlling an interface to the display 20, the display interfacefunctions being performed in the ASIC.

The optical link 153 could be implemented using the optical linktechnology described above for interfacing a hand held unit with a basestation. Indeed, the printer or other peripheral device could beimplement as, or connected to a base station for the hand held unit.

FIG. 11 illustrates in more detail the configuration of the ASIC 150.

The ASIC comprises the system controller 1.65 that controls theoperation of the pen and of its associated components. In thisembodiment system controller 165 consists of a microcontroller coreincorporated into the ASIC. In other embodiments it could consist ofsome other control means using, for example, one or more finite statemachines.

If the system controller 165 is a microcontroller core, then the datathat controls its operation is stored in an internal ROM 163 togetherwith the external ROM 76. Alternatively, there could be no internal ROM163 and the system controller 165 will then obtain all the data from theexternal ROM 76. Alternatively, again, the internal ROM 163 could beused exclusively without an external ROM 78. However, this would reducethe flexibility of the device. The use of the internal ROM 163 isadvantageous where a pre-defined amount of the operations to beperformed are fixed for all pen types, whilst the remainder of theoperation is dependent on a particular model, to take account forexample of language variations number of switches used to enter data,etc. The RAM 161 in the ASIC can be used by the system controller 165 asa scratch pad RAM to speed up operations and in order to reserve themaximum amount of RAM 78 for the storage of the main data. This “maindata” includes data identifying information relating to selectable itemsof, for example, a merchandising catalogue, which can be down loaded bytelephonic transmissions from a remote station.

The microcontroller receives requests via the bus 84 which is connectedhe external bus 84 illustrated in FIG. 10. However, in an alternativeembodiment where the system controller 165 consist of a number of finitestate machines, then control would be by means of the fixedinterconnection of the logic in the fixed state machines.

RAM 161 could be used as a short term data store leaving the RAM 78 tostore the main data, the data in RAM 78 being retained by the battery70. An additional battery (not shown) could be provided for dataretention to prevent the loss of data from the RAM 78 or the RAM 161 inthe event of failure of the battery 70.

The switch interface 155 responds to the operation of the switch 22 andensures that the system controller 165 receives signals which are devoidof bounce (resulting for example from multiple operations of the switchdue to the spring operation within the switch).

The head interface 156 carries out the necessary signal conditioning asrequired on receiving signals from the head 14. The signal conditioningwill depend on the exact configuration of the head and preferablycomprises simple buffering of the data read. Alternatively, it could beimplemented to provide at least some of the bar code conversionoperations as will be apparent to one skilled in the art.

Selector 159 is controlled by the system controller 165 and functions insuch a manner to allow the microphone 152 and the speaker 95 to providestandard audio telephony transmission or to allow the system controllerto transfer the data over the telephony network using, in the presentembodiment, conventional cellular telephone technology.

Thus the selector 159 enables the data entry device to be used as aconventional cellular telephone for the transmission of audio signals.In conventional telephony mode, the selector 159 takes signals from themicrophone 152 that have been processed by the signal processor 158 anddirects the output to the line interface 116. The processing performedby the processor 158 can comprise, as will be apparent to one skilled inthe art, conventional operations of buffering the microphone to filterout any frequencies not required and to amplify the signal to a suitablelevel. Received audio data is directed to the audio interface 157 whichperforms necessary signal conditioning before passing the signal to thespeaker 95.

In the data transfer mode, the selector takes the output from the dataformatter 160, which has prepared the data to be transmitted over thecellular telephone network, and directs this to the line interface 152.The speaker 95 is then used to output any tones or audio messagesindicating errors, correct operation, etc., again via the audiointerface 157.

Switching between modes can be accomplished using the keys and/or thescanning sensor of the hand held unit in the manner described above forthe entry of data and/or commands.

The output formatter 164 prepares the data to be transmitted to a remoteprinter via an optical link 153 (not shown). This transmission could bein any one of a number of forms, for example, infra red light usingtechnology as described above for interfacing the pen with a base unit.Alternatively, other remote link technology, for example a radio link,could be provided.

FIG. 12 illustrates aspects from FIGS. 10 and 11 to illustrate in moredetail the incorporation of an example of a cellular telephone systemwithin the data entry unit. The telecommunications interface 116comprises a line interface/duplexer which is connected to an aerial 178.The line interface/duplexer 116 is connected to a transmitter 170 and toa receiver/synthesizer 172 implemented in the selector 159. Alsoimplemented in the selector 159 is selector logic 174 for connecting thetransmitter 170 and the receiver/synthesizer 172 to the signal processor158, the audio interface 157, the data formatter 160 and the controllogic 165 within the ASIC 150.

Although specific embodiments of the invention have been describedhereinabove, it will be appreciated that many modifications and/oradditions are possible within the scope of the present invention.

Thus, for example, although in the presently preferred embodimentsdescribed above the hand held unit is configured with the shape of apen, it will be appreciated that the hand held unit could be configuredin other shapes as desired in other applications, for example in theshape of a pistol.

Although in the examples of the pen and base unit described withreference to FIGS. 1 to 4 and 8 an optical link between the pen and thebase unit is provided, in an alternative embodiment other wireless datatransmission means, for example radio signals, could be used, in themanner of a portable telephone of the type with a portable handset and abase unit.

The data from the memory of the pen (e.g., the complete list of itemswhich could be ordered from a catalogue) could conveniently be output inalphanumeric form via a modem to a facsimile (fax) machine for printingthe content of the memory.

In the preferred embodiments described above, catalogue data isdown-loaded into the pen from a remote processing system by telephone,over the telecommunications interface. However, as an alternative todown-loading, for example a complete catalogue, via the telephone line,other data entry means could be provided for the bulk of the data, thetelephone line then only being used for updating the stored data. Forexample the pen and/or the base unit as appropriate could be providedwith a socket or connector or reader for a memory device (such as aplug-in ROM, a smart card, etc.).

Although no speaker is illustrated in the examples of the pen describedwith reference to FIGS. 3 and 8, a speaker or other sound generatorcould be provided as in the FIGS. 9 and 10 embodiments for giving audiofeedback to report on the correct reading, or otherwise, of a code.Thus, for example, when a code is correctly read, one beep can besounded, and when a code is incorrectly read, two beeps could besounded. Alternatively, appropriate synthetic or recorded voice messagescould be output

Although in the examples described above the plane of the display ingenerally parallel to the axis of the pen, the plane of the display 20could be arranged to slope progressively towards the axis of the penaway from the head end of the pen to reduce the angle between the normalto the plane of the display and the line of sight of the user.

Also, although in the present examples two mechanical key switches areprovided, in other embodiments one key switch only could be provided.Operating that key switch a predetermined number of times within a shortperiod could be used to emulate the provision of two key switches forscrolling and other functions. More key switches could also be providedin other embodiments. For example, a numerical keypad could be provided.However, in preferred embodiments of the invention, the number of keysshould be kept as low as possible for any particular application. As inthe embodiments described above, two key switches are preferred. Thecontrol sheet or data carrier effectively forms a keyboard extension forthe pen.

Although in the example of a card or other carrier shown in FIG. 6 a setof bar codes for only numeric and command codes are indicated, ifdesired a set of bar codes for the complete alphabet could be provided.Alternative arrangements of the codes would also be possible, forexample a complete set of codes and corresponding characters could bearranged in the format of a standard typewriter keyboard layout. Thecodes could also be incorporated in the letters and numerals, forexample extending as a strip across the letters and numerals. Forexample, a bar code could replace the cross bar in a capital “A”, andsimilar modifications for the other letters of the alphabet.

Also, as mentioned above, in appropriate embodiments of the invention,codes other than bar codes or dot codes could be used. For example asymbol blob code could be used, this requiring about 1 Kbyte of storagefor decoding purposes. Indeed, in other embodiments of the inventionfull character recognition (OCR) could be employed where the readingsensor is in the form of a camera or other scanning sensor incorporatedin the reading head. With a camera and appropriate recognition logic,the pen could be used, for example, for fingerprint recognition,eitheras an aim in itself, or for user validation purposes.

In a merchandising system, where bar codes or other codes are associatedwith merchandisable items, this could be achieved simply by means of aprinted catalogue, or some other form of list, or as a result of codesapplied to examples of the products in question, or as a result of codesdisplayed, for example, on a TV screen with images relating to thoseproducts. The only requirement is that the display of the codes arereadable by the data entry system of the present invention.

Features from the respective embodiments of the invention describedabove could also be combined as desired to provide a configurationappropriate for a particular application.

Thus, for example, the audio telephony functions described withreference to the embodiment of FIGS. 10 to 12 could be incorporated inthe hand held or base unit, as appropriate, of the other embodiments ofthe invention.

Although in the specific embodiments described above thetelecommunications interface for the telephonic transmission ofinformation is only provided in a hand held unit where no base unit witha telecommunications interface is provided, it will be appreciated thata hand held unit with a telecommunications interface could be combinedwith a base unit also having a telecommunications interface, either ofthe same or a different type.

1. A data entry system comprising: a hand held unit comprising a readingsensor for sensing commands and/or data and for producing input signalsin response to said sensed commands and/or data; rewritable storage forinformation relating to selectable items; and a controller connected toreceive and process said input signals from said sensor for respondingto said commands to control said hand held unit and/or to said data toselect a said item and a display screen for displaying a user readablerepresentation of said commands and/or stored information for saidselected item, and a telecommunications interface for telephonictransmission of information relating to a selected item or items fromsaid storage to a remote processing centre and for telephonetransmission of information relating to selectable items from saidremote processing center to said storage.